🌵 Author(s) | Joseph Nelson RoseNathaniel Lord Britton |
🌵 Type | Pediocactus simpsonii |
Greek pedion ‘plain’ + Cactus. For the occurrence on the Great Plains (Britton & Rose: “Plains-cactus”). Not “Gr. ‘pedion’, plane, field; and Lat. ‘cactus’, cactus; for the frequent occurrence on level ground” (Eggli & Newton, Etymological Dictionary of Succulent Plant Names. 2004).
The English name foot cactus stems from the erroneous assumption that the first part of the compound is Latin pes (stem ped-) ‘foot’ (pes + Cactus would be Pedicactus).
Maarten H.J. van der Meer (2023 Jul 14). Pediocactus. Dictionary of Cactus Names. Retrieved from https://www.cactusnames.org/Pediocactus